The solid pattern was flat and dull. It absorbed all the light and made the creases stand out like Justin Bieber in a middle school classroom. The other fabric, however, had a really nice reflectivity to it, and it had the unique bonus of not looking like a bed sheet. …both of them are curtains, in case you’re wondering.

So the thing to remember here is that fabrics will have a profound impact on the look and feel of your photos, and I’m not just talking about backdrops. Consider the clothes your subject is wearing. The two photos below are from one of the first lighting experiments I did. In the example on the left I’m wearing a pea coat, which absorbs all the light and explains why I look like a floating head. The image on the right, however, is much more interesting because of the way the light dances around the fabric.

It’s also worth noting that the color of the two jackets is different here. Black pea coat against a black background doesn’t even sound interesting. However, if I were wearing a black leather jacket instead it would look much better because leather has a subtle reflectivity to it. In situations like this it can be helpful to create even more separation by using a colored rim light. Color contrast between your subject and background should definitely be considered, but don’t neglect the fabric as well.

Anyway, here’s what I came up with. I don’t love it, but it served its purpose; so I’m happy. It’s a mixed media piece. The drawing was done in my sketchbook and then I added some color and toning in Lightroom.

Enough about me. What helps you clear your head and unwind? When was the last time you were compelled to create? Where has your latest source of inspiration come from?

I ended up having to use two off-camera speedlights on either side of the stage to brighten up the speaker. Both flashes had a snoot on them to help aim the light and keep it from hitting the audience. I also had to make sure they wouldn’t spill light onto the background and wash out the green colored lights.

This second images shows how it looked before I added my lights. Notice how much less detail you can see in his suit coat as well as the brightness of his skin.

It would have been much easier to shoot with the available light and then pass the blame, but a photographer’s job is to produce good photos with no excuses attached.

Photographers, remember: you need to make a decision. Shooting weddings, families, pets, bands, sports = jack of all trades, master of none.

I consider myself to be a jack of all trades. I certainly don’t feel like I’ve mastered anything, but I’m confident that I can shoot most things better than the average photographer –Hint: the trick is not to be better, but to try harder.

Lately I’ve been wrestling with the notion of finding my niche, but the more I press down into a certain field the more complacent I become. I recently shot photos with a dude who’s been shooting weddings for “unfortunately 17 years” in his words. He certainly made a decision about the work he does, but he also got comfortable and apathetic in the process.

I have a hunch that specialization leads to burnout or boredom.

Personally, I need variety in my work. I value creativity too much to be comfortable with a repetitive diet. Even people like Jeremy Cowart who are exceptionally specialized often pursue creative, personal projects that are extremely different from their normal gig.

The deeper you dig in a single direction, the more you need external stimuli. Creativity thrives on variety.

Then I see someone like Joe McNally, who is one of the best photographers in the world, describe himself as a generalist, and I can’t help but wonder if that’s part of the reason why his photos are so remarkable. Personally I know that I’ve learned things from shooting fashion that have caused me to shoot weddings differently, and I’ve learned things from street photography that has improved my headshots.

So what do you think? Do you consider yourself a specialist or a generalist? Does an artist ever feel like he’s mastered something, or is that word merely attributed to someone else who does something better than we do? Does Talent + Complacency = Mastery?

If you must know, I was shooting four corporate headshots, but that’s irrelevant. The fact of the matter is that you have to account for a lot more than the time spent shooting photos. Time is time. Whether you’re taking pictures, writing a contract, or doing the dishes, everything takes time. More often than not your time as a photographer is eaten up by what happens before and after you hold the camera in your hands.

So next time you are asked to price an assignment consider all that goes into it. Time spent packing your gear, picking up rental equipment, traveling, setting up for the shoot, editing (of course), managing the files, creating and sending invoices, depositing checks at the bank, blogging about the shoot and uploading pictures to Facebook, etc… Don’t forget to include the time you spent estimating the price and corresponding with the client in the first place.

Everything that requires your time means you can’t spend that time doing something else. Is it worth the trade?

While the backpack is perfect for carrying everything from my studio to another location and back, it’s completely impractical to use during a shoot. Personally I group photo bags into one of two categories: transporting or shooting. The backpack clearly falls under the first category where durability, space, and weight are primary concerns. For shooting however, I need a bag that is accessible, comfortable, and snug. You’ll notice “stylish” isn’t exactly on that list… Personally, I prefer the ThinkTank Pro Speed Belt.

The belt itself is just that. A belt. But when you trick it out with some modular pouches it becomes a fanny pack on steroids that will have all the ladies wanting you.

The beauty of it is that all of the weight you are used to carrying around your neck and shoulders is now spread around your hips. Everything is close to your body, so you can run at full speed without worrying about your stuff banging around. Everything is easily accessible –no more digging around in the abyss of your messenger bag for that memory card– and often times that can mean the difference between getting the shot or missing the moment. I’ve been using my belt for over two and a half years now, and I’d be hard pressed to come up with a better solution for event photographers. If you find yourself looking for a better way to consolidate and access your gear while shooting, I suggest you give the belt a try.

Here’s a look at my setup. Clicking on the image will take you to Flickr where you can see the notes explaining what’s in each pouch.

P.S. The belt is also great for hiking. I usually strip it down until it’s just the belt and camera holster. It protects the camera and makes it easily accessible. I recently climbed Old Rag with it and I had zero complaints.

*I’m not affiliated with ThinkTank Photo in any way. They simply make good products that make my job easier, so I’m happy to talk about them.

Lesson One: Don’t delete your photos.  Today I’ve had three completely different clients say, “Hey, can you re-send the photos from ____?” They all have different reasons for needing them again, but the point remains the same. If I didn’t keep my photos long term then I’d have three disgruntled clients to deal with. It seems like a no brainer, but you’d be surprised how tempting it is to delete photos when you find that your hard drives are full. Which leads us to the next point…

Lesson Two: Establish an archiving solution. The important thing is that you have a system. Buying another external hard drive to “free up space” is not a system; it’s a symptom of a bigger problem. What you need is a plan. You need to know where to export your photos when you’re done with them, and you need to know how to find them years from now. I’ve blogged about my system before, but there are many different ways to do it. Find a solution that works best for you.

Lesson Three: Create online client galleries. This is where I’ve slacked off, and I’m paying the price for it today. Basically, you want a place where you can upload your finished, high resolution jpegs for the client to access on their own. I use Zenfolio, and I couldn’t be happier with it! I create a new group for each client, and then I add a new album for each shoot. This is ideal for corporate work where you’ll do multiple shoots for the same client, or destination weddings where you will have multiple days of shooting for a single wedding. The real advantage comes from the various options available such as privacy, expiration, and access control. This means my clients can locate their photos and download the high resolution images without having to wait for me.

Moral of the story, there is nothing sexy about file management. Do yourself a favor by making it as efficient and accessible as possible.

Approximate read time: 9 minutes (if you’re as slow as I am).

For the record, we both agreed to approach it with an open mind, looking for the strengths and weaknesses of both brands. After all, every photographer that owns a $5,000 camera will tell you that it doesn’t matter which camera you have. …yet I still haven’t been able to get any of them to trade.

Anyway, we hit up the town around sunset and kept shooting well into the evening giving us a chance to play with our speedlights too. We were lucky enough to have Lacey Garcia model for us, and she rocked it out! For anyone wondering here’s a look at the gear we were using:

Emily’s gear (that I was using)
Canon 5D Mark II
24-70 f/2.8
70-200 f/4
580EX2
580EX
RadioPoppers Px

My toys (that Emily was using)
Nikon D300
17-55 f/2.8
70-200 f/2.8
SB-800
PocketWizards Plus II

It was a learning experience, to say the least. I really wish we had a videographer with us to record all our comments and the visible ineptitude we both felt. Nevertheless, I’ve tried to make note of all the things that stood out to me, good or bad.

The differences…

I don’t like the auto contrast/brightness of the playback screen. It tries to adjust depending on how bright the environment is, but I find that it only makes me wonder how it really looks.

I enjoyed pushing the limits of the camera’s ISO range. My D300 isn’t amazing by today’s standards, so the 5Dm2 gave me a little more leverage at 3200 and above. It handled well, but I don’t think it’s as impressive as the D700, which is in the same price range as the 5Dm2.

I don’t like that it only shows you the last photo you took in a sequence. If I shoot three images in a row and then look at the playback screen it will show me the third image. Nikon on the other hand will quickly display all three images.

Image Stabilization in the telephoto lens is tangible. You can actually feel it working. I can’t decide if I like that or not.

The colors on the Canon appear more vibrant. The screen was definitely more vivid than what I see on my computer, but I think that has to do with the color settings in camera (which is kind of moot when shooting in RAW).

The on-screen menus and settings don’t feel intuitive; there is too much hierarchy which makes things harder to find and longer to adjust. Just try adjusting the Kelvin color temperature or deleting a picture and you’ll see what I mean.

I don’t like that nearly all of the buttons have multiple purposes.

The flash interface is a complete joke. Does anyone know how to turn on rear sync??

I love the streamlined form factor of the Radio Poppers; it’s a significant improvement over my clunky, dangling PocketWizards. The major downside is that Radio Poppers require you to have a speedlight attached to your hot shoe, which is not only expensive and bulky but a waste of what could otherwise be an off-camera flash. After using the poppers I’m eager to get the new breed of PocketWizards which seem to take the best of both worlds.

Canon’s approach to focus seems to be “close enough.” Personally I’m a stickler for focus, so this is a big one for me. Rather than staying locked on the object I focused, it occasionally decided that the background should be in focus instead (and yes, I checked to make sure I was in Single point focus mode). Emily confirmed that it happens particularly at wide angles. Not sure if this is a common problem, but it’s sure an annoying one.

I positively do not like using the wheel to set the focus point. I realize you can use the undersized directional pad for that as well, but I found that to be just as cumbersome. I suppose this is merely an issue of familiarity. Similarly, I don’t like the center point button on my D300, but Nikon wised up and fixed that in the D300s.

The rubber side of the Canon strap is more comfortable around my neck than the rubber side of the Nikon strap.

The flash range of eTTL seems more extreme than I thought it would be. -2EV might as well read “off.” Then again I prefer to shoot in manual, so I don’t have much to compare it to.

The recycle time of the 580EX just couldn’t keep a reasonable pace. It proved very inconsistent and I wasn’t even pushing it very hard. Emily said the batteries were fresh yet I was still getting some hang time on 1/8th and 1/16th power. I’d like to think that this could be remedied with an external battery pack like a Quantum Turbo (with which I am used to shooting).

Mounting lenses on a Canon is just about the only thing that feels intuitive to me. I have no idea why Nikon lenses mount backwards, but it has always annoyed me. Apparently the engineers at Nikon have never heard of “Righty tighty lefty loosey.”

I’m not quite sure how to describe it, but it feels like Canon’s depth of field (at least on the 24-70 f/2.8) has a faster falloff. Or perhaps it’s just more shallow than Nikon’s. Occasionally I would stumble upon this sweet spot where the images just seem to sing. Whatever it is, it looks nice and seems to give some pictures just a little more oomph.

It seems like Canon’s RAW files recover more detail than Nikon when you darken the image (in Lightroom). However, the image falls apart when you brighten it. There is a striped pattern to the grain/noise that becomes obvious when you push it.

I do not need nor want 21 megapixel images. Yes there is more detail to work with, but they take longer to import, process, and export. With Nikon’s top of the line camera (in my opinion, the D3s) weighing in at 12.2 megapixels Canon has decidedly won the megapixel war. …but they’ve let Nikon take the lead in most other areas (not including video).

In conclusion…

I feel like this was just an extended edition of why I don’t like Canon, but I’m being completely honest in saying that there wasn’t much that impressed me. I never experienced that “Wow!” moment that I did when I first shot with my D300 or my old Minolta for that matter.

Obviously I’m a big fan of Nikon, and now that I’ve given Canon a reasonable chance I appreciate Nikon all the more. Sure there are a few things that drive me crazy about them (like the lens mount, shoulder strap, and the interval timer mode), but all in all I’m now certain that it’s the best fit for me. It has a lot to do with the way I’m wired.

I’m a very technical shooter. I’m not the sort of guy who reads the manual; I’m the guy who reads it twice. If there’s a button, I want to know what it does. I want to have all the control at my fingertips, and Nikon allows me to do this in a way that feels intuitive to me.

I think Canon is better suited to people like Emily and my sister who don’t much care for technical details. They feel a lot more than I do, and they approach photography as an art where I tend to view it more as a science. The magic of Canon seems to be that hard-to-describe sweet spot. If that’s your thing then you might be better off with a Canon. …but I’ll still give you a hard time for it. =)

I’m gonna venture a guess that most full-time photographers and designers work their butts off at all hours of the day. Personally, I enjoy working late because my inbox and phone aren’t vying for my attention, and I often find my groove between 10:00 and 3:00. That’s just how I roll.

While I have the advantage of setting my own hours, the truth is that until recently I didn’t actually set any hours. The unfortunate reality was that there were always more demands on my time, and since I didn’t set my own schedule other people dictated it for me.

I now have defined normal working hours, and I propose that you do the same. It will look different depending on the work you do, but personally I charge time and a half for any shoot before 10AM and after 10PM. I also charge extra for any shoots on Sundays. So for 12 hours a day 6 days a week I will work for my normal rates, but if you want me to get out of bed early, or work during my prime evening hours, or give up my Sabbath then you’re going to pay extra for it. Sometimes that means I’m not the right photographer for the job, and that’s perfectly fine by me. That’s the freedom of setting my own schedule.

I still have to evaluate each job case by case, but at least I have a framework for putting some value on my time. Previously I found myself stretched too thin, underpaid, and on the edge of burnout. Now it’s a little sweeter getting up early because I know I’m getting compensated for it. Do yourself a favor and set some boundaries. It does a body (and a business) good.

Every client that books a shoot by Monday, May 2nd will receive 25% off the total price. The shoot can happen any time this year; it just needs to be booked by Monday. A down payment of fifty percent is required. It can be everything from a wedding to a new headshot or even a company Christmas party. Get creative! Contact me here.